APC | Belfast (EGAA & EGAC)¶
Airspace¶
AA INT is responsible for the Belfast CTR and those parts of the Belfast TMA and Strangford CTAs 2,4,9,10,12 and part of 1,5 and 6 at and below FL90.
Belfast Aldergrove Delegated Airspace
AC INT is responsible for the Belfast City CTR/CTA, which lies under the Belfast TMA. AA INT shall not penetrate Belfast City airspace without coordination. Belfast City outbounds climb to 3000 feet, as such Belfast Aldergrove traffic should normally not overfly the City CTR/CTA below 4000 feet.
Belfast City Delegated Airspace
Responsibility for Traffic¶
AA INT is responsible for overall traffic flow within the Belfast TMA including both initial sequencing of Belfast Aldergrove and Belfast City IFR inbounds, and initial control of Belfast Aldergrove and Belfast City IFR outbounds. All outbound IFR traffic is subject to a release from AA INT. Additionally, AA INT is responsible for VFR traffic operating within the Belfast CTR/TMA and for the control of IFR traffic joining and leaving controlled airspace in the Belfast TMA (including IFR traffic to/from Newtownards).
Info
AA INT is not responsible for top-down control of Newtownards.
AC INT is responsible for intermediate/final sequencing of Belfast City IFR inbounds and VFR traffic operating within the Belfast City CTR/CTA. AC INT may require departing IFR traffic to initially be transferred to themselves to deconflict from traffic under their control and this should be coordinated with AA INT and AC ADC as required.
AA FIN is responsible for final sequencing of IFR inbounds to Aldergrove.
Silent Handover Procedures with Area Control for Inbound/Outbound Traffic¶
IFR inbounds/outbounds to/from Belfast TMA airfields may be transferred from/to area control to/by AA INT without coordination, provided that:
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It is following the agreed route and is climbing/descending to the agreed level.
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Inbound traffic inside CAS is within 60 NM of Belfast Aldergrove, or traffic outside CAS is within 40 NM of Belfast Aldergrove.
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Successive arrivals and departures are spaced:
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By 10 NM, constant or increasing, in trail longitudinal separation; or
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5 NM, constant or increasing, between aircraft on parallel or diverging headings providing that these headings follow the general direction of the anticipated arrival/departure route.
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If the aircraft has filed a cruising level below the agreed level, the traffic may be transferred at that level without coordination.
Transfer of control is coincident with transfer of communication, provided that:
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The above conditions are met.
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The receiving unit keeps the flight progressing in the general anticipated direction.
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The receiving unit does not climb inbound traffic, descend outbound traffic, or stop traffic at an intermediate level while still in the airspace of the offering unit.
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All conflictions within the airspace of the offering unit are resolved before the aircraft is transferred.
Where the above conditions cannot be met it is the responsibility of the transferring controller to initiate coordination with the receiving controller.
Inbound Procedures¶
All Belfast TMA inbounds will route via the following standard inbound routings unless coordinated:
| Arriving from | Via | Route |
|---|---|---|
| SE(RNAV 1) | M146 to EGAA (FL255-) | PEPEG - ROBOP - IPSET - BELZU |
| SE(RNAV 1) | M147 to EGAA (FL255+) | NOPKI - MATUT - ROBOP - IPSET - BELZU |
| SE(RNAV 1) | M146 to EGAC (FL195-) | ERDUV - LUSOD - PEPEG - ROBOP - MAGEE |
| SE(RNAV 1) | M146 - Z198 - M146 to EGAC (FL195-FL255) |
ERDUV - MASOP - IDGAS - IBTES - LIMKA - MAGEE |
| SE(RNAV 1) | M148 to EGAC (FL255+) | REMSI - NINEB - MASOP - IDGAS - IBTES - LIMKA - MAGEE |
| --- | --- | --- |
| SE(RNAV 5) | L10 (FL75+) | IOM - NELBO - BELZU/MAGEE |
| SE(RNAV 5) | L10 (FL75-) | IOM - RINGA - BELZU/MAGEE |
| SE(RNAV 5) | UP6/L46 | REMSI - MASOP - NELBO - BELZU/MAGEE |
| --- | --- | --- |
| S | N34 | NEVRI - ABSUN - BELZU/MAGEE |
| SW/W/NW/N | Open FIR | TMA Boundary direct to BELZU/MAGEE |
| NE | P600 | BLACA - BELZU/MAGEE |
| E | Open FIR | BLACA - BELZU/MAGEE |
Notes
- VATSIM traffic is assumed RNAV 1 capable unless otherwise notified by the pilot.
- Where the final routing point is listed as BELZU/MAGEE traffic shall route to BELZU for Belfast Aldergrove and MAGEE for Belfast City.
- When Belfast City are using Runway 04 and Belfast Aldergrove Runway 25, Belfast City arrivals shall be positioned south of Belfast Aldergrove arrivals by PC West/Rathlin/Antrim.
All Belfast TMA inbounds will be transferred to AA INT from Antrim by silent handover descending to/level at FL100.
When Antrim requires aircraft to be transferred at a higher level, this will be coordinated with AA INT by means of a reduced radar handover in the format:
Coordination
Callsign, descending to Level, (Heading), (Speed), (Released for further descent subject (preceding arrival)).
When Antrim decides to transfer an inbound that potentially conflicts with an aircraft under their control, the details of both aircraft will be passed to AA INT before transfer of control is effected by means of a radar release, as per the MATS Part 1 procedure.
Transfer from AA INT to AC INT¶
No silent handover procedure exists for traffic transferred to AC INT by AA INT. Each arrival must be individually coordinated, although this may be done electronically by means of initiating a track transfer, provided the correct cleared level and routing information (heading or own navigation) are displayed in the track data-block and/or electronic strip. If there is a potential conflict that is not possible to resolve using vertical separation prior to transfer, verbal coordination must be effected.
AC INT will not climb inbounds or stop their descent above the transfer level without coordination and must continue the inbound in the same general direction to position into the Belfast City CTR/CTA, tracking no further North-West than the North-Western Belfast City CTR boundary.
Outbound Procedures¶
All Belfast TMA outbounds will route via the standard outbound routings detailed in ADC - IFR Departures unless coordinated otherwise.
All IFR outbounds are controlled by AA INT and subject to release from AA INT. It is the responsibility of AA INT to ensure that aircraft departing Belfast TMA airfields are identified, validated, and verified before transfer to Antrim.
The typical releases given are as follows:
| Departing | Track | Altitude |
|---|---|---|
| EGAA | Direct NUMPI/RINGA/PEPOD/BLACA (Note 2) | Climbing to altitude 5000 feet |
| EGAC | Direct NUMPI/RINGA/BLACA | Climbing to altitude 3000 feet (Note 3) |
Notes
- In practice, aircraft are never routed via LISBO/DUFFY despite being flight-planned to do so.
- Departures to BLACA from Runway 25 are typically assigned a right turn after departure to deconflict from any EGAC traffic and EGAA inbounds. It is recommended that a radar heading is used initially rather than a right turn direct BLACA to avoid the pilot mistakenly making a left-hand turn due to it being the shorter distance.
- EGAA inbounds are typically descended to 4000 feet above the EGAC CTR/CTA, but if traffic permits, a higher altitude (typically 5000 feet) may be given to EGAC outbounds to facilitate a continuous climb.
- Aircraft will fly standard noise abatement before turning on track or flying the assigned heading.
It is the responsibility of AA INT to pass releases that ensure adequate separation between departing aircraft and other aircraft. This may be achieved by passing a “released time XX” or “released subject (preceding departure) plus X minutes” restriction. Alternatively, separation based on radar derived information may be applied between aircraft taking off and a preceding departure or other aircraft in receipt of a surveillance service provided that there is reasonable assurance the departing aircraft will be identified within one mile from the end of the runway and at that time, the required separation will exist. Therefore, departing aircraft may be allocated the same/higher level than a previous departure provided the assigned heading will ensure radar separation from such other traffic (this form of separation must not be applied with aircraft on own navigation).
IFR outbounds from the Belfast TMA shall be transferred to Antrim by silent handover climbing to/level at FL90.
Some aircraft, rather than departing via the standard outbound routings, will have flight-planned to leave controlled airspace to the north or west of the Belfast TMA. These aircraft will be transferred to Rathlin on-track that point by AA INT climbing FL90 and typically they will be transferred before leaving controlled airspace so that Rathlin has time to agree with the aircraft which service will subsequently be provided outside controlled airspace.
When AA INT requires aircraft to be transferred at a lower level this will be coordinated with Antrim/Rathlin by means of a reduced radar handover in the format:
Coordination
Callsign, climbing to Level, (Heading), (Speed), (Released for further climb subject (preceding departure)).